When you decide to pursue a songwriting career, you shouldn’t expect to be successful right away.
To become an industry expert, you have to know your way around. Since there’s no handbook to guide you and no course to prepare you, it’s important that you keep a realistic view of the songwriting world.
Here are a few things you should know before you invest all you’ve got in a new career.
1. Income is unpredictable
You may be writing a lot of songs but it doesn’t mean that they’re all going to make money. Songwriting is only a part of the process; you need to get your songs picked up and recorded by artists before you can actually earn from them.
Aside from that, the success of your songs counts as well. They have to be downloaded a number of times and played on radio stations for them to reach more people. If they get licensed or used for films, the more successful they’ll be.
Keep in mind, however, that it could take months before you can actually earn your first paycheck. This means that you’ll have to find another way to support yourself while you are still getting started with your songwriting career.
See Also: Living the Freelancer Life: 5 things every variable income earner should know
2. Write something unique
Writing unique songs can make you a successful songwriter.
The key is to avoid tunes that are already on the radio. Although they can serve as inspirations, you should avoid copying them. You want your songs to stand out against other songs so that when they get sent to artists, they’ll find yours more catchy and interesting.
The more unique your songs are, the more chances they have of getting picked and recorded.
3. Not every song gets to be a hit
Your songs will go through a handful of people before they get released. The list includes the artist, the label as well as the producer. Each of these people’s opinion matters and they might shut your songs down if they can’t see any potential in them.
If ever you get turned down, do not see it as a failure. Instead, use it as a stepping stone for you to work harder and get a better songwriter career.